Mauritius African Cup

My last race for the year was on the beautiful island of Mauritius. After landing I could feel the high humidity. The Tamassa Hotel was magical, there were 4 swimming pools, 3 restaurants and a spa. I soon realised that focusing on the race was going to be a bit harder than usual. I relaxed in my room the most of the time before the race because it was too hot to venture outside into the sun and humidity.

On race day, the blue skies were gone and it was like a tropical storm that was going to hit us. After breakfast we waited outside for the bus to take us to the race venue, unfortunately the bus broke down so the organizers arranged an empty dump truck to get us to the venue. This was quite an experience if you ask me. Luckily it didn’t rain then – only started when we arrived at the venue.

After the start of the 2nd swim lap, I felt more tired than usual and realized that I’m in for a diffucult day. I felt good for the first 3km on the bike then I started to suffer, I got dropped from my group and cycled alone until Travis caught up with me. I have to say he dragged me through that cycle leg.

I decided to go hard from the start of the run just to see what will happen. After 2 laps I started slowing down and at the end I was at a snail’s pace. I finished 6th .

After prize giving we experienced a truly Mauritian culture show. The next morning we went snorkelling to admire the sea life of the ocean.

When I got to the airport, I soon find out that my flight was cancelled and I thought an extra night in Mauritius this is really the best way to end off the racing season. The best part was that the airline booked me into the same hotel which I stayed in during the trip, so I could surprise everyone.

And so ended my 2011 season of triathlon, it was a good year with mostly highs and a few lows, I have 2 weeks of recovery now and then bring on 2012.

Thanks to everyone who supported me during the 2011 season I hope I won’t disappoint you in 2012.

Cheers

BSG Energade Vanderbijlpark - Final

The final race of the BSG/Energade triathlon series was held in my home town, Vanderbijlpark, so I was hoping to produce a good performance for the home crowd. :) The morning of the race was very overcast and cold, and I thought it was going to be a wet race. Luckily, the weather improved and the sun began to warm things up.

During warm-up, my legs felt a bit sore from the previous two weekends’ African Cups, but I was going to give it my all. My dog and training partner, Macca joined us for the day as honorary member of Team Future Life. Thanks Mom for her “trisuit”.

The swim was a non-wetsuit. We started with a frantic pace, but somehow I ended up at the back of the pack. I then slowly worked myself to the front of the main pack, but then discovered that there was a breakaway group.

The first 2km of the cycle was uphill and brutal, my legs almost gave in but u kept with the main pack and slowly started to catch the breakaway group. After we caught them, all of us sat up and watched Richard and Erhard as they were the two main contenders for overall series honours. They also decided to watch each other. All of us entered T2 together so it all came down to a running race.

Only the first few 100m of my 5km run felt good, but then as the race went on my legs started to die slowly. In my mind I was running but my body said “no sorry - not today”. I finished 9th position.

Huge congratulations to Richard Murray and Andrea Steyn for winning the series overall.

Also big thanks to my sponsors: Future life, K-Swiss, Biogen, ASG Sportsolutions, Finis, Profile Design, Turbovite, Ftech, Cycleops, Tuks and HPC.

Thanks to my parents and brother for their continued support.

Cheers
R

Pretoria African Cup

Having done well last week I was hoping to emulate the performance at the African Cup in Pretoria. We started at 10am so the weather was a bit cooler than last week. The field was a bit bigger (18 athletes), so it would make the race more interesting and harder.

The swim start was quite hard - it felt like we were doing a 100m sprint, but luckily it started to settle down at about 400m to a manageable pace. I was following the feet of Erhard hoping to have another good swim like last week. I exited the water in 3rd place after Abrahm and Erhard.

Rudolf, Abrahm

We rushed through a fast transition and Theo managed to just latch onto our bunch. Unfortunately Theo got a puncture early. I was with Abrahm and Erhard in the front, but I just dropped at some stage, so I thought this was going to be a very long day……. Luckily, when Chris caught up to me, my legs came back and I was able to ride again. I knew we had to maintain the pace, firstly to limit the time gap to the leaders and secondly to keep a gap to the next bunch, because there was some fast runners in there.

Rudolf, Chris

We lost about 3 minutes to the leaders, but we opened the gap on the group behind us. Entering T2 my coach said I must run like I have never ran before if I want ITU points out of this race. I decided to go out hard and see for how long I can survive before I bonk on the run. After the first lap of four, I heard that I only lost 15 sec to the leaders - that gave me a huge chunk of hope.

At the end of the 2nd lap again I only lost 15 sec. I was just hoping that my legs would survive to the end of the race. On lap 3, I only lost another 10 sec and was still in 3rd position. Now I knew that I only have to maintain for the last lap. It is always a positive mind shift, if feeling good until the last lap. Then it just feels as if you were on wings…… When I realised at the finish line that I was within the time limit and as a bonus received 3rd place, I was very happy – but also very tired.

It was a really hard day out, but I’m happy with the end result. Congrats to Erhard and Abrahm for taking 1st and 2nd. Thank you to everyone that was there in support. A huge thanks to my coach, Lindsey Parry for the support on the day and otherwise and your trust in me.

Cheers
Rudolf

Zimbabwe African Cup

I planned to the only my second African Cup of the year, even though the year was almost at an end. The race was held in Troutbeck, Zimbabwe, a country with the most beautiful nature.

We arrived at Harare Airport at about 2pm on Thursday afternoon. Then the long bus trip started. Luckily, Erhard warned me, so I took some food for the long road ahead. It took us 5 hours to get to the hotel, but we had fun along the way so it wasn’t too bad. The hotel itself was amazingly beautiful. We unpacked quickly and then headed for dinner and some sleep.

The next morning we had a nice buffet breakfast and then went on to do some light training for the day and relax for the rest of the day, I did some studying as I had to write two exams on Monday when I get back in Pretoria.

Registration

Our race was scheduled for 12am. The sun was very hot, but the light wind cooled us down a bit. We were a small field of only 12 entries, but a few very good athletes.

The swim leg of the race was relatively hard but not too intense. We were 4 athletes exiting the water together - Erhard Wolfhaardt, Chris Felgate, Valery de Falbaire and I.

Rudolf, Chris, Valery, Erhard

The only flat section of this triathlon, was the swim. The cycle route was difficult as it was uphill out and downhill back – six laps of 6.6km. Quite early on the first lap, we were only three in the bunch – Erhard, Chris and I. Soon after the start of the second lap Chris was a few meters back and he couldn’t catch up again. Erhard and I continued the hard pace for the whole of the bike leg to keep the lead and to see if we can make a gap – the run should be a bit easier then. On the last lap of the bike my legs started to give in and Erhard decided it was time to go, so he dropped me. I nevertheless tried to keep the pace high for the last lap and lost only 30sec to him.

Rudolf, Erhard


The run was just as hard as the cycle, with no flat sections whatsoever. I was lucky to have started the run with a gap over the rest of the field. I pushed it hard till about 6km and then started to relax a bit as I knew I had to race again next weekend at Pretoria African Cup. In the end I managed to keep my 2nd place. I was so happy about this result!

Chris, Carlyn, Erhard, Fabienne, Rudolf

It was a really hard race but a fun one as well. Hats of to the Zimbabwe Triathlon Union for hosting such a great race, everything went perfect without any trouble. Thank you to Zimbabwe for all arrangements, hospitality and kindness. I’ll be back next year.

Cheers
Rudolf

BSG Energade Midmar Dam

It always rains at the Midmar leg of the series. On Saturday – after our 5 hour drive – it looked as if we would not be disappointed. But then when we woke up on race day, the sun was shining and there was no cloud in sight, but the wind was really pumping like in Cape Town. I racked my bike and chit chat with the other athletes and soon it was time.

The swim was surprisingly easy and we all were happy to just sit in the pack. We relaxed until about 200m to go, then I decided to move to the front of the group. I sprinted out of the water like Usain Bolt and flew through transition.

Once we mounted the bike it was hammer down from the go - we were a group of 5 athletes in the front pack and worked very well together. Unfortunately at about 3km, I had a puncture and that was my race over for the day.

I was really disappointed in that, but it happens sometimes…….

Cheers
Rudolf

BSG Energade Potchefstroom

On a beautiful Sunday morning in October we drove to Potchefstroom to race the 3rd leg of the BSG/Engergade series. I was feeling ready for this race because the previous 2 races that went really well. I was hoping to have another good performance. The weather was perfect.

The swim was a bit tough, because there was lots of grass just below the water surface - but that also made it more fun. We started of with a bang and went full speed ahead. When we got to the grass patch in the water the pace slowed down a bit. At the 2nd last buoy, I was feeling very good and moved to the front of the pack and then I thought that this will be a good race. I had a good T1 and rushed out on the bike leg.

We were about a group of 8 in the front pack, but not all of us worked together - the rest just sat there and sucked wheel. This made us angry but there’s not much we can do. When Richard got a puncture, there we were one less to work. Then I thought……well If I’m doing a lot of work for the group - why don’t I do it for myself instead. I tried to go on a beak away but it only lasted for about 2km. My legs were broken in the end of the bike and I knew the running was going to be tough.

I had a very bad T2 and came last out of T2. So that also didn’t help my running case. But in the end I had a good run and finished 5th. I was a bit disappointed with the result but hey….that’s racing.

We will have a break this weekend, and after that we head to Midmar for the 4th round of racing.

Cheers
Rudolf

BSG Energade Harties

It was time for the 2nd leg of the BSG/Energade series. I was feeling good after last week’s performance and hoped that I can continue the form that I have now. It was the new venue for this series – Hartebeespoort Islands Estate.

The race was held the same time as the Rugby World Cup quarter final. A big screen was up for the spectators, but we missed it.

Wian and I did our warm up with a few jokes in between, but focussed on the race well before the start. The swim was in a canal so it was tightly compacted. We swam really hard trying to break up the group and succeeded in doing that.

On the bike it was Wian, Henri, Erhard, Abrahm, Jeff, Theo and I in the front pack. We all worked hard, but Wian was still feeling a bit ill so he stopped. The cycle route was hard with a lot of false flats and rolling hills. Entering T2 In the end it was only Abrahm, Erhard, Henri, Theo and Ieft in the group.

I had a really good T2 and came out in front. I was leading the race for a couple 100 metres when Erhard came flying past me with Abrahm close on his heels. I was in third place with Henri running next to me. We ran together for 2km then I made my move. I was feeling good so I managed to break away from him. In the end I finished in 3rd place.

I just want to thank all my sponsors for the support and I’ll see you next week at the 3rd leg of the series in Potch.

Until then
Cheers
Rudolf

BSG Energade Roodeplaat

It was time for the most popular series in SA – the BSG Energade series. This series consists of 7 sprint races throughout SA. The first race took place at Roodeplaat Dam just north of Pretoria.

It was a cold and wet race, which would make it very interesting. It was also my first race for my new team Teamfuturelife Protriteam. I was very excited to race for them and show them that the investment they made in me, was a good one. We received some awesome cool kit and we definitely stood out from the rest with our lime green suits and clothes, not to mention the green helmets

Interview - Wian and I

Wian and I did our normal race warm up and then I was ready to start the race. The swim was fast and hard, but I felt good during the swim. With about 250m to go, I broke away from the main field and tried to catch the breakaway group. I gained on them but not enough to catch them.

Swim exit

Since I had a small break on the main pack, I could have an easy transition and head out on the bike. Richard, Erhardt and I worked hard on the bike to catch the leaders. Once we caught them, we sat up a bit playing cat and mouse with the other athletes in the front pack that didn’t want to work - this left Abrahm free to fly off the front. The 3 of us worked hard to catch him but we didn’t, we only closed the gap a bit.

T2 was very fast and we headed out on the 5km run route - it was undulating with no flats, which made it really hard. I felt really good on the run building though it - going faster towards the end. I ended up coming 4^th elite which was a good result for me. I was happy getting a good result with the big boys.

Podium

So next week is the 2^nd race of the series at Hartebeespoort Dam

Thanks to all my sponsors

Cheers
Rudolf

Teamfuturelife Protriteam

Thank you for the opportunity to race for TeamFutureLife during the upcoming season. I’m super exited – this is a huge honour to have the sponsors believing in me. I will do my best to perform at my peak at all times. I want to thank my following team sponsors :

Futurelife
Moducare
Turbovite
Finis
K-Swiss
Sidi
Rudy Project
Biogen
Compressport
Profile Design
F-Tech

Cheers
R

2011 Beijing World Championships

Finally, it was time to give account of all the hard work that I did this year - at Beijing World Championships. I was feeling very good in training the week before we left for Beijing. We departed on Saturday night and arrived at Beijing late at night. Normally, the bus trip to the hotel is an hour, but our bus driver decided to take us on a tour of China instead. When we got to the hotel we booked in and went to bed immediately.

We slept for about 5 hours then we headed to breakfast. All of us didn’t feel good and looked like zombies walking around; the jet lag caught up to us and it was going to be a mission to stay awake the whole of the day. We did some easy training just to wake up the body. We survived the day without sleeping and headed to Pizza Hut for dinner. It was like playing Pictionary to order food and hoped that what you ordered is what you really wanted. That night, I slept like a baby and was feeling very good the next day. We did some training and a bit of sightseeing at the race venue, it was truly something amazing - to think I was going to race at an Olympic course - it gave me goose bumps.

The rest of the week flew past and before I knew it, it was race day. We started only at midday so I could sleep in the morning and there was no rush to get ready. I woke up at 9 am and had breakfast, after that checked if my bike was ready to rock and roll.

At 11am Theo and I headed down to the race venue to rack our bikes and to warm up. I could feel the adrenalin pumping when I did my warm up - it was an amazing feeling that I had. I only started to become nervous during the athlete introduction and line up. When the announcer called my name I knew it was race time. I selected a good place on the pontoon and was ready…….

When the hooter went, it was chaos, 70 athletes swimming side by side to the first buoy. It was only one lap swimming so you just had to stay in the pack. Around the first buoy it was like a boxing match, arms and legs flying everywhere with athletes wanting to go forward no matter what. After the turn it calmed down and we settled in. With about 300m to go we swam skew and lost connection with the front pack. After the swim I could still see the front pack 10sec in front and raced through T2. The cycle leg consisted of 6 laps and had one big hill that would be the make or break point.

I was firmly in the 2nd pack chasing the front pack hard. Unfortunately, on the 2nd lap disaster struck, I all of a sudden started vomiting and had absolutely no energy left - half way up the hill, I almost stood still trying to go forward. I decided to stop and went to the medics just up the road. When I got there the put me in the ambulance for observation and after the race took me to the hospital for further tests. I was SO very disappointed not to finish, all the hard work that I have done was for nothing. I came all the way to China just not to finish - I was heartbroken.

For the next two days, I was “assistant manager” and helped Lindsey with the rest of the team.

In the end it was a fun experience even though I didn’t finish, but next year I’ll be back stronger than ever. Lesson learnt – always be grateful for everything you have – don’t take anything for granted. Say “THANK YOU” every day

Thank you for everyone that made this experience possible – Triathlon South Africa, my coach Lindsey, my sponsors, my parents and brother and my Heavenly Father.

Cheers
R.

Arranging a trip in a day

Normally it takes a few weeks or even months to arrange everything for a trip overseas. This includes accommodation, travelling, visa and all other. But we managed to co-ordinate all in a day and then wait 5 days for the visa.

I was told on Wednesday morning that I have to race in Switzerland 10 days later and I need to organize everything. It took a team effort to get everything that I needed in one place, my passport and all of my documents were at home and I was in. This meant that someone had to bring the stuff to me and I have to organize letters from the University to give me permission race in Europe. Unbelievably, the following morning Lindsey and I applied for my visa, the Swiss Embassy accepted everything I could obtain it in 5 working days. This means I’ll receive my visa Wednesday morning and will depart for Lausanne later the afternoon.

This was only possible with the help of my support system. Thanks to my Dad, Mom, brother, coach Lindsey, Stef at te TSA office, Nicola, team members and the helpful lady at the Swiss Embassy for arranging everything ready on time.

I appreciate your kindness.

Bela Bela 5150

It was time after a long spell of no racing to get back into things at the first 5150 on South-African soil. The conditions was hot, because we only started at 12 noon. The race was held in Bela Bela (formerly Warmbaths) and I always liked hot conditions. I was feeling very positive about the race, because it was a non-drafting race and normally, I am pretty good at it.

Breakfast

I did my normal pre-race warm-up and was ready to go. We were quite a small group – only the pro’s and elite age group athletes - so the swim wouldn’t be such a huge fight. We started and immediately Jeff went out in front and no one could follow him. In the 2nd bunch it was Erhard, Wian, Lucie, and I - we kept a good pace and I was feeling good. At that stage I thought it was going to be a good race. After the swim we rushed to transition on the bikes and out of the Forever Resort we went.

On the way to T1

It was a 2 lap cycle and after the first lap I was still feeling very good. But then the 2^nd lap started and my legs decided to go on holiday and abandon me on the race. I was suffering on the bike and everyone came flying past me.

Then, I knew the run was going to be a fight for survival. On the run I was struggling a lot, my legs didn’t want to move and my lungs was on fire. I shuffled the 10km to the finish. 

The suffering

After the race I was quite disappointed but then I looked back on it and saw I had a really good swim and a first lap cycle. It is still a privilege to be in good health and be able to race. It was a very fun race and I will be back next year. That evening we were spoiled by the Sullwald’s with a wonderful braai.

Africa Triathlon Championships – Maputo

The race weekend started early as we left home at 5:30 on Friday heading to OR Tambo Airport. We checked in and while waiting for boarding, we met the Sullwalds and had a quick cup of coffee. Once the plain took off, I thought I could sleep a bit, but I was wrong - the pilot seemed to dodge potholes in the air, so it was kind of a roller-coaster ride/flight.

After arriving, we had to negotiate which shuttle to take and then headed to the hotel. We stayed at the Southern Sun Maputo, which was also the host hotel for the event.

The Host Hotel

We enjoyed a cup of coffee before checking into the rooms. After we unpacked, Wian and I went out for a bike ride. Because we are unfamiliar with the surroundings, we decided to take to the road next to the sea and it paid off, we didn’t get lost and we managed to get in a good ride. Later the afternoon, we had a short swim in the sea and relaxed for the rest of the day.

Wian, Rudolf

On Saturday morning we did the course familiarisation and enjoyed a nice breakfast afterwards. Race briefing and registration was at 4 in the afternoon, so I did a quick run before that. After the race briefing we had a pasta party and some time to chat a bit and relax before the race.

The Hotel

On race day we started at 7:30 am. In contrast to the previous day’s perfect weather and calm sea, the wind was pumping and the water was very choppy. The officials weren’t able to anchor one of the buoys as it was pushed out of place by the strong winds. They then decided to reduce the swim to 2 laps out and back – 1200m.

Referee explaining

Swim start

I felt very comfortable and had a really good swim, getting into T1 in the same pack as the race favourites.

Wikus,Rudolf

The bike leg was 8 laps of 5km, with a nasty hill at the start of each lap. Once on the cycle leg, we knew Abrahm was way in front, but there was no real urgency within the bunch. On some laps, the pace on the hill was harder, but no real attacks was performed. This means that the race would be decided on the run…

The flats

My second transition wasn’t good at all and I lost a bit of time there, but I knew the run was 10km long and anything can happen. My running rhythm felt good until somewhere on lap 3 when I started to cramp. For the rest of the run it was damage control and trying not to loose too much time. I finished 3^rd u/23 elite so I’m very happy with that result.

Thanks to everybody that made this event possible. Thanks to all my sponsors and my supporters. This was really and experience!!

Sasol Cross Off Road Triathlon Abrahamsrust

Before we knew, it was time for the last race of the series Sasol Cross Series. I was feeling confident after my performance at the SA Championships the previous weekend. I was the current leader of the series and if I had a good day, could be crowned the winner. There were heavy rain the previous day and night so the race would be very muddy and wet. Nevertheless, I was ready to race and still have fun while doing it.

The swim was a non-wetsuit cold and fast one. Chris and Theo and I was in the lead out the water into T1.

Rudolf, Chris, Theo

As predicted, the bike leg was very wet and muddy. I was leading the bike until about 7km where after Theo and I exchanged the lead a few times. It carried on until about 9km and then I decided to put the hammer down and go for it. I made a small gap and with mountain biking it was always “out of sight out of mind”. Once I made a gap it started to grow slowly but surely, I was really having fun which was a bonus. Unfortunately Chris had a few crashes and decided to abandon the race after the bike leg. I entered T2 with a minute and a half gap. I now knew that I could take the run easy and enjoy the race for a change. I had the series wrapped up and was winning the last race as a bonus.

Finish

It was a very good series – two wet, muddy races and two dry, hot races. Thanks to the organisers Spektrum Sport and all of the sponsors of the series: SASOL, SUUNTO, Cebe and Asics for making this series possible.

I will be back next year to defend my title.

Cheers
Rudolf

SA Triathlon Championships (ITU African Cup)

It was time for SA Championships. They took us all the way to the “windy” city – Port Elizabeth. For the elite’s – yes, I’m first year u/23 – this will double up as an ITU African Cup. I was feeling good about my chances because of my previous races and results leading up to SA champs. I was the first time that I would race against the big boys of South African triathlon and a few International athletes – which includes former World Champion, Tim Don.

We flew down to PE on Friday and on Saturday did the course familiarization, registration and pre-race briefing.

Soon it was Sunday. Our race only commenced at 13:30 – so there was lots of time to chill. There was silence before our race started and my heart was pumping(loudly). As the gun went off I knew this is now – I’m playing with the big guns. The swim was very intense and we were fighting for position and slip behind the good swimmers. I got caught out behind the wrong feet in the swim and lost a bit of time there, but it wasn’t that bad. After the first 750m lap, I could see that I was 2nd pack and the front pack was about 30 sec ahead of us. I swam as hard as I could but I couldn’t catch them. Running into T1, I saw that our group was quite big and thought that we could catch the front pack if we worked well together.

Unfortunately we didn’t. We tried out best to catch them but that didn’t happen. I motivated the other athletes to push just a bit harder. The frustration was on everybody’s faces.

I had a good T2 and was out in a flash. The last(biggest?) hurdle was the 10km run. My legs were sore after the bike but the adrenalin was pumping and I started the run very motivated. The run consisted of 3 laps of 3.3km. On the last lap my body didn’t want to go anymore. I wasn’t running - I was just surviving. I finished the race 8th overall elite and 2nd u/23. This was a huge success for me. It was my first race with the big dogs and I managed to survive and do well, I was very happy but tired.

Thank you to all my sponsors (TUKS, K-Swiss, Orca, Felt, Whasp, CycleOps) for investing in me. Thank you to my parents and brother for the support. Thank you to my coach Lindsey, for always being there with assistance and advise. Last but not least – thank you to Lord for my talent and the courage and will that he gave me to do my sport.

Cheers
Rudolf